Somewhere, P.T. Barnum is crying ....

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I find this to be very sad news indeed. The Circus has become politically correct. Ringling Brothers won a lawsuit a couple of years ago proving their handlers DID NOT harm the elephants. So its not really PETA's fault, or is it?? Is Mr. Feld tired of negative publicity ?? Once they get rid of the elephants, then the lions and tigers will not be far behind. And once they get rid of animals, what's the difference between them and Cirque Soliel ??
(I'll bet Emmet Kelly is having a good cry too....)

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/df575148 ... phant-acts

The end of circuses can't come fast enough for me. I don't need to see animals coerced into unnatural behaviour for my amusement. Circuses are inherently cruel and exploitive. If you want to see lions and tigers and elephants, go to a reputable zoo.

I agree. My parents took me to see Barnum & Bailey when I was a kid and I hated it. With all the lights and smells it was a sensory nightmare for me and I got a migraine headache, but my main memory was the lion tamer was a thug with his cracking whip and the elephants looked miserable. I would rather see Cirque de Soleil any day.

Politically correct doesn't have anything to do with it, it's about cruelty to animals. I went to the the Ringling Brothers circus when I was in the sixth grade and didn't care much for it even at that young age.

Androbot01, I'm not even crazy about zoos, anymore.

In this case zoos are the lesser of two evils. Animals should be in their natural environment and protected if needed.

Well then, if THAT'S the you feel.
NO ANIMALS IN ZOOS. It's cruel to remove them from their natural surroundings.
If they go extinct, then at least they did so in their own environment, without SUFFERING the cruelty of being imprisoned in horrible, nasty ZOOS ! !! !! !

Although you are trying to be sarcastic, outlawing zoos would be great, actually. Regardless of how well-maintained the zoos are, they still pale in comparison to the environments they are mimicking. Being smarter than every other species on Earth should not give people the right to keep them in captivity.

And yes, before you say anything, I also think livestock is not necessary. If I had to, I would gladly hunt for food. It builds character. However, I do not think the animals we keep as livestock could live on their own in the wilderness, so the process would probably take a while.

And yes, there are four cats in my house. Hypocritical, maybe, but they are free to climb our rooftop and walk wherever they want. They choose to come back every day.

Yes, if you keep any pets OF ANY SORT, you are a bloody hypocrite.

I keep two cats and a dog, but they're not in an unnatural environment. Humans and cats and dogs have a history of cooperation for mutual success. I certainly wouldn't keep an exotic animal. I wouldn't have the skill to to care of it.

And yes, zoos are bad.

Agreed. But I still draw the line at pets living in cages or aquariums. Or any business selling pets, which not only is terrible from an ethics POV, but is also completely unnecessary, considering how there are already millions of cats and dogs in the world.

Then you are fooling only yourself.
Set your kitties free ! !! Stop sheltering them, and feeding them.
They deserve to run free with the wild kitties.

You hypocrite ! !!

As I said before, they are free to go. They spend the entire day outside with free access to the rooftops and, by extension, the streets. They still choose to come back home every afternoon. And that is the difference between pets (of the traditional sort, e.g. cats and dogs, who have had a symbiotic relationship with men for thousands of years) and exotic animals in captivity, who cannot really be left on their own without endangering people and themselves.

I keep my cats indoors. For a few reasons. It's too cold for them in winter, there are too many diseased feral cats in the area and traffic is heavy.
They will live healthier lives staying inside.
Plus I don't think it's responsible to let your pet mess on other's property.

Another bloody hypocrite ! !! Set the kitties FREE ! !! Its their nature to roam free and unfettered. Healthier lives are UN-NATURAL. You are artificially protecting them.

FREE THE KITTIES, I SAY ! !! !!

You are right, I forget about that. The street I live in now does not have much traffic nor feral cats (and the only stray dog in the street is a friend of the cats) and the cats are surprisingly respectful of the neighbours houses, so I guess I got lucky.

That's lucky.
They should spend some time outside, it's just not safe for them here.

The thing about circuses in particular is that they are of no benefit to the animal and are of considerable detriment. They only exist to satsfy selfish human amusement.